Tourism in Las Vegas
The major attractions in Las Vegas are the casinos and the hotels. The most famous hotel casinos are located on Las Vegas Boulevard on the portion of that road known as the Las Vegas Strip. These larger casinos are located outside of the city. Many of these hotels are massive, providing thousands of rooms, with their large adjoining casino areas. There are many hotel casinos in the city's downtown area as well, which was the focal point of the city's gaming industry in its early days. Several large hotels and casinos are also located somewhat off the Strip, as well as in the county around the city.
Some of the most notable casinos involved in downtown gaming are on the Fremont Street Experience which was granted variances to allow bars to be closer together, similar to the Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego.
The Fountains of Bellagio is a vast, choreographed water feature with performances set to light and music. The performances take place in front of the Bellagio hotel and are visible from numerous vantage points on the Strip, both from the street and neighboring structures. The show takes place every 30 minutes in the afternoons and early evenings, and every 15 minutes from 8 p.m. to midnight. Before a water show starts, the nozzles break the water surface and the lights illuminating the hotel tower turn to a purple hue (usually), or red-white-and-blue for certain music. Shows may be cancelled without warning because of wind, although shows usually run with less power in face of wind. A single show may be skipped to avoid interference with a planned event. The fountain display is choreographed to various pieces of music, including songs by Andrea Bocelli, Frank Sinatra, and Gene Kelly.
Within Mirage. Almost every hour in the evening the "volcano" in front of the casino erupts in a terrific light show. Additionally there is an impressive aquarium behind the check-in counter and a dolphin habitat that can be viewed for a fee. The volcano was renovated and reopened in December 2008.
Features include:
- Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat
- Cher's 1991 CBS special Cher Extravaganza: Live at the Mirage was taped during stops of the singer 1990 Heart of Stone Tour.
- An artificial volcano along the Strip that "erupts" nightly from 5–11 pm on the hour. After sister property Bellagio opened, the design firm WET, the company that created the Fountains of Bellagio attraction, improved the technology behind the volcano effect to make it more spectacular in 1996. To avoid the smell of uncombusted natural gas odorant, the mercaptan is stripped from the natural gas and a pina colada fragrance is added to the natural gas stream. The Volcano closed for a second and more elaborate renovation in February 2008 and reopened on December 8, 2008. A new soundtrack complete with the sounds of actual volcanoes erupting has been included for an even more enhanced experience.
- An atrium at the hotel entrance features a large number of palm trees, water features, and other "rainforest" flora.
- The 53-foot-long (16 m), 8-foot-tall (2.4 m) aquarium behind the registration desk, recently renovated by top aquarium designers from around the world, is home to nearly 1000 specimens.
- Love, a Cirque du Soleil theatrical production.
- Terry Fator is a current showcase after winning America's Got Talent.
- The estate of Michael Jackson and Cirque du Soleil will develop Michael Jackson shows. The Las Vegas permanent show, also in partnership with MGM Mirage, is expected to open in late 2012.
- "Bare", a lounge in which guests can traverse topless. While men are welcome, this attraction is mainly promoted for women since they are allowed in the lounge for $10-$20 as apposed to the charge for men of $20-$40. This is a rare experience for women since in most public places women must have some sort of covering over their breasts. One must be 21 years or older to enter.
The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a pedestrian mall and attraction in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. The FSE occupies the westernmost 5 blocks of Fremont Street, including the area known for years as "Glitter Gulch," and portions of some other adjacent streets.
The attraction is a barrel vault canopy, 90 ft (27 m) high at the peak and four blocks, or approximately 1,500 ft (460 m), in length.
While Las Vegas is known for never turning the outside casino lights off, each show begins by turning off the lights on all of the buildings, including the casinos, under the canopy. Before each show, one bidirectional street that crosses the Experience is blocked off for safety reasons. Concerts, usually free, are also held on two sound stages. The venue has become a major tourist attraction for downtown Las Vegas, and is also the location of the Neon Museum at the Fremont Street Experience and the city's annual New Year's Eve party, complete with fireworks on the display screen.
Star Trek: The Experience . Includes two well themed attractions with simulator rides & live actors in Trek costumes. walk through museum serves as the queue to the attractions and "Quarks" bar awaits you at the finish of the attractions. Though frankly, unless you're a big Star Trek fan, it looks a little dated now. Tickets are usually available at the discount/half-priced ticket booths located on the Strip. Closed in September 2008, scheduled to reopen at Neonopolis Mall May 8, 2009; pushed to 2010, still closed as of February.
Las Vegas Chinatown Plaza . A place to experience Asian culture. Located about 1 mile west of Treasure Island. Take a westbound CAT Route 203 bus from the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Spring Mountain Road between TI and the Fashion Show Mall.
Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. The Shark Reef in the Mandalay Bay hotel (about $16), the highlight is walking through a transparent tunnel with sharks, sea turtle, fish on all sides.